Karnataka to identify Special Education Zones before implementing NEP 2020 in schools: Report

NEW DELHI: The Karnataka primary and secondary education department has created a task force to find out Special Education Zones which lack proper education, health, literacy etc. as the state government plans to implement the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the Indian Express reported.

These SEZs will be provided with extra resources to maintain equality in the education system, the report said.

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A government official told the Indian Express that the task force containing educational experts and top bureaucrats has already had three meetings to identify such zones where the government needs to intervene.

“SEZs will be identified at the block level, to especially determine those falling behind on the fronts of education, health, literacy and nutrition among other socio-economic factors. Such zones will then be allocated government resources to ensure they are developed on par with their counterparts aiming for better overall educational outcomes,” the Indian Express quoted the official as saying.

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A member of the School Development and Monitoring Committee (SDMC) in Dakshina Kannada appreciated the step, pointing out that identifying SEZs at block levels was the need of the hour, the report said.

“A bottom-up approach is imperative to ensure certain developmental issues at schools are addressed promptly. Amid apprehensions of how NEP-2020 would be implemented in schools, it is imperative that school development is micromanaged efficiently to lay the groundwork for the new policy expected to take effect from the 2022-23 academic year,” the Indian Express quoted him as saying.

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Earlier, the Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh had announced that the government plans to implement NEP 2020 in schools from the next academic year, even as colleges, universities in the state started doing so from this academic year, the report further said.

Recently, the Karnataka higher education council in collaboration with International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC) organised the state's first National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 conclave in Bengaluru. Higher education minister CN Ashwath Narayan inaugurated the Karnataka NEP Conclave 2021 themed ‘Strategising the Future of Higher Education’.